FCB Women dispatch SGS Essen to reach third consecutive cup final

• Third final appearance in a row
• Tanikawa & Harder strike, Edna with brace
• Final on 14 May against Wolfsburg in Cologne

Final spot secured! FC Bayern Women celebrated a deserved 4-0 victory over SGS Essen in the DFB Cup semi-final on Easter Monday to reach the final once again. The Munich girls built up a comfortable lead in the first half thanks to goals from Momoko Tanikawa (29th minute), Pernille Harder (40’) and Edna Imade (45’+4), with Imade (73’) netting her second goal in the second half to wrap up the win.

The holders are therefore through to the DFB Cup final on 14 May in Cologne, where they’ll take on record cup winners VfL Wolfsburg.

Barcala: ‘So proud of the team’

“I’m so proud of the team and all the staff,” said head coach José Barcala afterwards. “I have no words for what’s happened in the last few weeks. A big thanks to the fans, who supported us so magnificently. It’s always tricky against a team that are so well organised. It takes time and patience, and then the chances will come. I have so many good players who can adapt to different positions, and that makes us so flexible and strong.”

Dallmann: ‘Looking forward to Cologne’

“I don’t think it was a spectacle or a firework, but after all the games over the last few weeks, including some mentally intense games, we did our job convincingly,” summarised Linda Dallmann. “We’re pleased with the 4-0 scoreline and are now looking forward to going to Cologne. Essen stood their ground well in the first 20 to 30 minutes and also had half-chances. But when we keep having those long passing sequences, I think as an opponent you also become a little tired.”

Kett: ‘Can be proud’

“We can be very pleased,” stated Franziska Kett. “We played well for the most part and created a lot of chances. We can be proud of this. We knew it’d be tough against Essen. They were very aggressive in the early stages and didn’t give us any space. We knew we needed to go up a gear, which we then did. We scored four goals again, which is pleasing.”

Tanikawa, Harder & Edna on target in first half

The German champions dictated proceedings from the off in front of their home crowd, although it took over a quarter of an hour for the first big chance to arrive. Imade had a go from a tight angle, but her effort was deflected behind for a corner. Five minutes later, the ball was in the visitors’ net for the first time but Arianna Caruso’s volley from Giulia Gwinn’s long ball was disallowed for offside.

The deadlock was broken soon after, though. Gwinn flicked the ball on to Tanikawa in the penalty area, who finished it confidently into the bottom right corner on 29 minutes. The Japanese turned provider for the second goal in the 40th minute, crossing beautifully for Harder to head in. And there was even time for Imade to make it 3-0 on the stroke of half-time, when she headed in on the rebound after Dallmann’s shot had been blocked.

FCB ease into final

Bayern continued to dominate the match after the break, moving the ball around patiently and waiting for openings to extend their lead. Georgia Stanway had a go from distance in the 52nd minute but her effort sailed well wide of the target. 

With 61 minutes gone, Bayern twice went close. First, Caruso tried her luck from distance, but her shot was deflected for a corner. Carolin Simon , who had come on as a substitute moments earlier, then delivered a sharp ball into the box. Essen goalkeeper Luisa Palmen dived under the ball, allowing Magdalena Eriksson to get a header on it, however she sent the ball just over the crossbar. It remained one-way traffic in Munich: Barbara Dunst was released by Imade on the left side and she raced away before crossing the ball back to the Spaniard in the penalty area, who nodded it in to make it 4-0. That was how it finished as Bayern advanced to the final of the competition for the third year running.

International break before crunch weeks

Following the meeting with Essen, several members of the FCB squad will now head off to their national teams for the next set of international matches. After that, the business end of the season begins. Already on Wednesday 22 April, there’s a first chance to secure the Bundesliga title in the away match at Union Berlin. Kick-off at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei is at 18:00 CEST. That’s followed just three days later (25 April) by the first leg of the Champions League semi-final against FC Barcelona at the Allianz Arena (kick-off 18:15 CEST).

🏟️✨ Bayern will play their Champions League semi-final home leg against Barcelona – tickets are available here!